Photo Guidelines
A great photo is the single biggest factor in how your finished piece turns out. Here's what we look for — and how to get the shot.
Best results
- ✓ Natural daylight
- ✓ Eye-level perspective
- ✓ Face fills most of the frame
- ✓ Sharp focus on the eyes
- ✓ Original-resolution file
Please avoid
- ✕ Heavy filters or beauty effects
- ✕ Screenshots from social media
- ✕ Blurry or out-of-focus shots
- ✕ Strong backlight (sun behind pet)
- ✕ Cropped ears, eyes, or face
The Details
Use natural daylight
Outdoor light or a sunny window gives us the truest colors and softest detail. Mornings and late afternoons are perfect.
Get on your pet’s level
Eye-level photos look like portraits. Photos taken from standing height look like surveillance. Squat down.
Fill the frame with your pet
Closer is better. We need to see eyes, nose, and fur texture clearly. If your pet is a small dot in a big yard, we'll have to crop heavily.
Send the highest-resolution version you have
Originals straight from your phone's camera roll are ideal. Screenshots from social media lose half the detail.
Avoid heavy filters or beauty effects
Filters smooth out the exact details we need to capture your pet’s personality. Send the unedited shot.
Skip blurry or out-of-focus photos
If you can't see the whiskers clearly on your phone screen, we won't be able to paint them. Take a few extra shots to find a sharp one.
Avoid harsh backlighting
If the sun is behind your pet, their face turns into a silhouette. Move so the light is behind you instead.
Don't crop the face or ears out
Make sure both ears, the full face, and a bit of the neck are in the shot. We can always crop tighter, but we can't add what isn't there.
Technical specs
- Resolution: at least 1500 × 1500 pixels. Larger is better.
- Format: JPG, PNG, or HEIC — all standard phone formats are fine.
- File size: up to 25 MB per photo at checkout.
- Multiple pets: you can send one photo per pet, or a single photo with all of them.